


A Brave, Stupid Sacrifice

by autisticatboy



Category: Transformers Animated (2007)
Genre: Character Death Fix, Ficlet, Fix-It, M/M, TFA FINALE SPOILERS OBV but its been out for like 12 years so, not so much a fix as 'fuck that noise im imagining this instead' but, u kno
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-26
Updated: 2019-08-26
Packaged: 2020-10-02 18:03:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20396806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/autisticatboy/pseuds/autisticatboy
Summary: Prowl makes a sacrifice, for the good of the Earth. Zero can't stop him.





	A Brave, Stupid Sacrifice

**Author's Note:**

> i posted this on tumblr after watching the tfa finale and didnt bother editing it, but ive made it a little bit better to post here!!!! cus fuck that bit of the finale 
> 
> get used to things this length and low quality that swerve thing was an OUTLIER and should not be counted

It was a moment of pure panic.

Zero barely had the time to process it all. He tried to scream, reach out, anything to stop Prowl from doing what he thought he was doing – but by the time he had jumped to his pedes, by the time his servo reached to close around Prowl's leg and only found open air, it was too late. Fear, grief, and righteous anger shot through his circuits. Hidden tears welled in his optics. 

Jazz was the one to catch Prowl as he fell from the AllSpark. 

All Zero saw was dull metal, unlit optics, limbs hanging limp. The air was quieter, the sound of one mech's internal workings and buzzings snuffed out. His chest felt tight, his limbs heavy. 

“No,” he whispered. He nearly tripped over his own pedes as he rushed closer, clutching Prowl’s limp servo in his own with a desperation he hadn't felt in centuries. Jazz carefully knelt and laid him out. He took a step back as Zero collapsed to his knees beside him.

“Prowl,” he choked out, voice wavering, thick with sadness and static. He leaned down, forehelm pressing with a sad _clank_ against his chest. “Prowl, baby, don’t do this to me.” He held Prowl’s servo between their chests, clutching it so tightly that it left small dents in the shape of his digits. 

“Zero…” Jazz was gentle and sympathetic. He was significantly better at holding in his grief - he had to be, in this job - but the pain shone through all too clearly in his voice. “I think he’s gone.”

“No, no he can’t be _gone_!” Zero protested, his helm still down and optics squeezed tightly shut behind his visor. “He can’t be gone just like that! I–” He hiccuped, words catching in his vocalizer. “I was going to ask him to be my _conjunx_, Jazz, he _can’t_ just-”

A servo fell on his shoulder. He looked up tearfully, expecting to see Jazz standing beside him and attempting to soothe him, but he was still a few pedesteps away. His expression was hard to read, but he thought he looked… surprised. 

“Conjunx?” came a familiar timbre - much weaker than usual, but unmistakable. “I think I would like that.”

Zero’s optics flashed and darted back down to the mech lying in front of him. His mind worked frantically to put together the scene before him.

Prowl’s optics had come back online – _he_ was back online. He could hear his spark thrumming, weaker than he had ever heard it, but it was _there_. His plating was significantly duller, a far cry away from his usual lively Autobot color scheme, but he was _online, _andthat was about all Zero had the processing power to care about.

He drew in a sharp vent. His optics were wide in disbelief, shoulders slack, mouth dropping open. “Prowl?”

Prowl smiled, ever so softly. “Who else?”

Zero’s tears slipped past his visor. He pulled his weak partner into a tight, tight hug, unashamedly allowing himself to cry - he wasn't used to it, by any means, but it was all he knew how to do right now. He could hear Jazz, just barely – Ratchet was on the comm line, he was telling him to hurry to the top of Sumdac tower, as if he were terrified this wouldn’t last. The thought hadn't occurred to him before, and he tried to keep it out of his mind now.

“I- I thought you were–”

“Offline?” Prowl tucked his helm against his neck, allowing the cool metal to soothe his own hot frame, still burnt in places from the power of the AllSpark. His servo traced weak, soothing circles along his back struts. “I thought the same. But… I suppose the AllSpark decided it wasn’t my time.”

Zero held him tighter, smiling uncontrollably despite the tears still dripping off his face. 

“It had _better_ slagging not be," he hiccuped, "we have a _ceremony_ to do!"


End file.
